Measuring the Impact of the #GOALS Program
The #GOALS program of the Ascension Foundation is a one-day interactive educational experience engaging middle school students to inspire them to Go Out and Love Science. The program is committed to building a future healthcare workforce that includes all communities and inspires towards healthcare career choices from as early as middle school.
The Ascension Foundation engaged and sponsored the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society’s data team to conduct an evaluation research study to measure the continuous impact of the #GOALS program in our communities.
The #GOALS research study team at Notre Dame seeks to enhance the impact of social change programs by utilizing gamification to improve data collection accuracy and augment evaluation while enhancing interest and participation in healthcare careers through gamified experiential learning.
In the evaluation of the #GOALS program, the research study team at the Lucy Family Institute developed and continues to enhance a custom #GOALS medical game on the Roblox platform. In this interactive, game-based platform, middle school students explore healthcare careers while providing data on engagement, interest, and self-efficacy in medical roles through surveys embedded within the platform.
Why Evaluate #GOALS?
- Innovate in gamified learning
- Augment survey data collection
- Amplify social change impact
- Advance experiential learning evaluation
The #GOALS Evaluation Vision
Transforming ‘Maybe I Can’ into ‘I Will’ in Healthcare Careers.
The research study team seeks to use interactive tools to engage young people, improve data accuracy in measuring social change programs and utilize gamification and social interaction programs to amplify their impact in experiential learning and advancing healthcare career choices among the youth.
Results & Impact
In 2025, the evaluation incorporated both paper-based surveys and the game-based tool to assess the impact of the #GOALS live event. Findings demonstrated that the game-based approach captured greater and more consistent changes in student motivation, confidence, and interest in healthcare careers.
Building on this validation, the Lucy Family Institute is expanding the use of the Roblox-based platform as a primary tool for data collection before and after the #GOALS experience, demonstrating how innovative, student-centered technology can enhance both learning and research.
Explore the #GOALS Program Evaluation
The #GOALS Program Evaluation is made possible through a partnership between:
